Both coastal conservationists and shellfish growers agree that the new state budget makes important new investments in the state’s oyster industry. North Carolina Coastal Federation staff members learned Monday night that the budget included all of the requested funding for oyster restoration and crab pot cleanup — two of the federation’s major projects for keeping…

The North Carolina Coastal Federation sent a comment letter Monday to the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and a second comment letter to the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), requesting the two agencies consider and discuss the impact of new information about the environmental effects of geological and geophysical oil and gas surveys — commonly…

Volunteers again gathered at Trinity Center in Pine Knoll Shores to put down oyster bags for a marsh toe revetment that will eventually extend 500 feet along the shore. Building off the progress made June 1, this group of 34 volunteers put down 500 oyster bags to extend the revetment to 225 feet. For the…

Fly Fisherman magazine announced recently the creation of its Conservationist of the Year Award. The award will honor a person whose volunteer work for a conservation organization has helped protect or improve fisheries habitats in the previous year. The winner will receive $10,000 to donate to the nonprofit conservation organization of his or her choice,…

Stormwater is the number one pollutant of coastal waters, but the North Carolina Coastal Federation and Down East Insulation are mitigating the effects of stormwater runoff by installing rain barrels into yards in the White Oak River Basin. Staff at the federation worked with the company on June 9 to install six rain barrels in the Marsh…

Staff and interns at the North Carolina Coastal Federation teamed up with counselors from Camp Albemarle on Tuesday, May 31 to protect a shoreline along the Newport River from erosion while also restoring valuable habitat for a long time to come. The living shoreline, which is 244 feet long and comprised of about 2,000 bags…

Volunteers from the local community came out to Trinity Center in Pine Knoll Shores on Wednesday to help protect and restore our shorelines, one bag full of recycled oyster shells at a time. In the muggy June air, volunteers of all ages formed a line, passing along bags of oyster shells to the edge of…

The North Carolina Coastal Federation is currently hosting its annual Native Plant Sale at its headquarters office in Newport. Stop by any time between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday to purchase plants that will brighten up homes and yards while also providing habitat for birds, butterflies and other animals. Native plants make for beautiful…

In this issue, we chat with North Carolina Coastal Federation member, Joey Hester, a former intern in our central office and current non-point source planning coordinator for the N.C. Division of Soil and Water Conservation. Tell us a bit about yourself. I’m from Rocky Mount and spent most of my childhood hunting and fishing, so…

The North Carolina Coastal Federation hosted a meeting and tour for the Cape Fear Chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers on May 24 that focused on stormwater runoff solutions in Oak Island. Engineers, public officials and residents alike showed up to learn more about about stormwater runoff reduction measures the town has implemented. The walking…

Imagine yourself on a long highway trip without the opportunity to rest before the next leg of your journey. Just as rest stops along our highways offer that chance, our coastal inlets provide critical resting habitats to the thousands of shorebirds traveling north and south to their nesting grounds each spring. Not only are our…

North Carolina Coastal Federation staff, fellows and interns recently joined middle school students from Davidson in planting plugs of smooth cordgrass, a salt marsh species, at Trinity Center in Pine Knoll Shores as part of an ongoing project to build a living shoreline at Sanders Point in Bogue Sound. Planting cordgrass helps prevent erosion at Sanders Point,…

The North Carolina Coastal Federation celebrated grassroots efforts yesterday, joining community members and other environmental groups in celebrating eight years of hard work against Titan America’s plan to build a cement plant in Castle Hayne. More than 200 people enjoyed free music, food and speakers at the Titan-Free Jamboree at Battleship Park in Wilmington. Titan…

May is National Teacher Appreciation Month. The Coastal Federation is lucky to call Sandie Cecelski, an influential and respected teacher, a board member. Sandie has spent the last 30 years teaching marine science in New Hanover County. She helped to launch the Marine Science Academy at E.H. Ashley High School, which offers college credit courses…

Meet our Partners: Chris Connaway Our work touches the lives of everyone who lives, plays, and works at the coast. One of our contractors, Chris Connaway of Connaway Marine Construction, has worked with us on many restoration projects including living shoreline projects, causeway removal at Permuda Island, and oyster reef restoration projects in Stump Sound…

The Coastal Federation led a collaborative effort with the Town of Wrightsville Beach, the City of Wilmington, N.C. Department of Transportation, and UNC Wilmington to reduce the volume of stormwater runoff flowing into Bradley and Hewletts Creeks. If the runoff doesn’t enter the creeks, the contaminants it contains won’t enter either. This keeps the water clean and…

North Carolina Coastal Federation April 12, 2016 What’s New Tag with: News, Oil Shore Stories Screened Throughout the Coast Last week, the North Carolina Coastal Federation, Oceana, Surfrider, and local filmmakers celebrated the announcement to table offshore drilling exploration in the Southeast Atlantic with a series of films called “Shore Stories.” Local chapter leaders and…

The second Realtor Action Day organized by the Wilmington Regional Association of Realtors saw huge growth, increasing from 400 volunteers in 2015 to 580 in 2016. “This has grown into our biggest event of the year,” said WRAR President Don Harris. “We teamed up with the Coastal Federation at Carolina Beach State Park to both…

Every year college groups come from near and far to the Coastal Federation to use their spring break leave for a good cause. Many colleges and universities offer Alternative Spring Break (ASB) trips for students to work and serve a community nonprofit as an alternative to traveling to a traditional spring break destination. The schools…

Celebrate Earth Day with us! The Coastal Federation is teaming up with local environmental partners to celebrate Earth Day along the North Carolina coast. Look for us at these events in your region. You can learn more about or register for events by clicking on our event calendar: www.nccoast.org/events. Outer Banks Saturday, April 23, 1–…

In order for these proposed rules to be consistent with the Federal Clean Water Act as well as state laws and regulations enacted pursuant to that federal statute, Section 15A NCAC 02H .1001(6) requires that whenever these proposed rules aren’t sufficient to protect “existing uses,” that additional measures be taken to ensure that a narrative…

Going for a hike with the little ones along the Patsy Pond Nature Trail? Stop by our headquarters office and check out the new Discovery Backpack for free! Inside the pack are field guides, scavenger hunts, nets and other tools to help young explorers learn about the forest. The backpack is available for checkout on…

A new lesson plan on living shorelines and coastal erosion is now available for educators. The lesson allows students to explore how various shoreline stabilization methods influence coastal erosion and the surrounding habitat. Students rotate through four stations of the following shoreline models: Bare sand shoreline Hard structure protection method Living shoreline with planted marsh…